He says you should add 5 power foods to your meals: beans, avocados, water melon salmon and eggs. These ingredients can promote heart health and over all well being. Chef Matt, formerly of Spiaggia, says it's also important to incorporate as many organic and fresh ingredients into meals as possible. The chef has created 1st & Fresh www.1st-fresh.com , a Chicago-based company dedicated to encouraging working men and women to eat healthier; the company delivers breakfast, lunch, snacks, and power foods to small businesses and workers around Chicago.
Chef Matt explains the 5 Power Foods and shows how to use them in tasty recipes.
POWER FOOD #1: BEANS
Benefits: Helps burn fat, regulating digestion, fights against obesity, colon cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure - With the healthy dose of fiber, protein, iron, and folate, beans are a big power food to fight against many diseases, high blood pressure, and more.
1st & Fresh RECIPE: Hummus with pita chips, marinated olives and sesame cookies
POWER FOOD #2: AVOCADOS
Benefits: Neutralizes heart risks - Avocado packs plenty of fat, but most of the fat is the good unsaturated kind. Avocados provide fiber, vitamin C and vitamin B6, and about one-third of your daily requirement of folate, a nutrient that helps neutralize excess levels of heart attack-causing homocysteine.
1st & Fresh RECPE: Dijon Cobb salad (tossed romaine lettuce, grilled chicken, bacon, avocado, and tomato-herb Dijon vinaigrette dressing)
POWER FOOD #3: WATERMELON
Benefit: Aids prostate health - Watermelon contains 40% more of the active cancer-fighting compound lycopene than tomatoes. Lycopene is essential in prostate health and may even block the plaque buildup in your arteries that can lead to heart attack.
1st & Fresh RECIPE: Prosciutto & Melon (prosciutto, watermelon, baby arugula, and grissinis with fig balmsamic drizzle)
POWER FOOD #4: SALMON
Benefits: The prostate and heart - Most of the health-boosting credit in salmon goes to its treasure chest of omega-3 fatty acids, which also regulate depression and other mood disorders and are believed to reduce arthritis pain. Other studies show frequent fish consumption may protect against Alzheimer's.
1st & Fresh RECIPE: Roasted salmon, Mache, miso honey sandwich with Asian slaw side
POWER FOOD #5: EGGS
Benefits: Fight eye disease, lower cholesterol - Eggs are very low in saturated fats and provide a lot of important nutrients. And the yolk is among the very best sources of lutein, an antioxidant that may help prevent age-related macular degeneration. Eggs also defend against various eye diseases due to the wide array of nutrients
1st & Fresh RECIPE: The Quicheadilla with egg, bacon, green chile, onion and cheddar cheese
